422 Corridor group releases 2014 report

Feb 16, 2015

Many blighted properties have been demolished, many miles of roads have been resurfaced, an urban farm was built, funding was secured for a Mahoning River boat launch as well as a Liberty Park pedestrian bridge, and property maintenance codes were established. These are among the 2014 highlights of the organizations leading the 422 Corridor Redevelopment Plan in Girard and Youngstown.

Many blighted properties have been demolished, many miles of roads have been resurfaced, an urban farm was built, funding was secured for a Mahoning River boat launch as well as a Liberty Park pedestrian bridge, and property maintenance codes were established. These are among the 2014 highlights of the organizations leading the 422 Corridor Redevelopment Plan in Girard and Youngstown.

The Trumbull County Commissioners, the Youngstown Neighborhood Redevelopment Corp., and the Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber are leading the Redevelopment Plan to transform what they call the heart of the Valley. The organizations released their 2014 progress report recently.

“It’s pretty exciting to look back and see how much the stakeholders have accomplished in such a short amount of time,” said Regional Chamber Foundation President John Rossi, who is among those spearheading the 422 Corridor initiative. “We are going into 2015 with a lot of momentum on which we can build.”

The progress report contains the following details:

The Trumbull commissioners, Trumbull Land Reutilization Corp., and City of Girard identified and demolished multiple structures on Belgrade Avenue and Dearborn, Davis and Howard streets.
YNDC eliminated vacant houses in Brier Hill and along with community residents continued building an urban farm that will be operated by a resident family.
More than 5,000 feet of Girard roads – including portions of N. Davis Street and Indiana, Illinois, North Lorain, Amherst and Atlanta avenues – has been resurfaced.
Grant funding is in the works to construct a boat launch on the Mahoning, rehabilitate a pedestrian bridge in Liberty Park in Girard, and add $20,000 in new recreational equipment in Stambaugh Park in Girard.
Girard City Council passed property maintenance standards and contracted with the Trumbull County Planning Commission to coordinate with the county’s comprehensive plan.

Vallourec Star sponsored an initial Corridor Business Association event to highlight the accomplishments, further identify neighborhood challenges and discover shared resources opportunities. The diverse cross-section of business owners that attended the event will continue working together this year to transform the corridor that has already received more than $1 billion in industrial investment over the past five years.